I’m fascinated by how neurons communicate with each other and my long-term career goal is to understand how synapses in sensory systems, particularly visual system, achieve and maintain fast and reliable signal transmission which enables a seamless and accurate perception of our environment.
I received my PhD training under the supervision of Dr. Gregory Hockerman at Purdue University on the biophysics and molecular pharmacology of voltage-gated calcium channels (VGCCs) and Ca2+ signaling in pancreatic β cells.
I joined Dr. Kirill Martemyanov’s lab at Scripps Florida in 2015 to study the molecular mechanisms that govern the selective wiring of two types of photoreceptors: rods and cones, which are the primary light sensors in the retina. The selective synaptic connections of photoreceptors with their corresponding downstream ON-bipolar neurons is essential for vision and dysfunction of photoreceptor synapses causes retinal diseases including night blindness.
My independent research funded by National Eye Institute (NEI K99/R00) was designed to test the hypothesis that trans-synaptic adhesions and signaling perform multifarious roles in the formation, specification and plasticity of retinal synapses. This research will serve as a gateway to understand how synaptic adhesion and signaling encode and process different aspects of visual information and how retinal synaptic malfunction leads to visual deficits.
